Here's the hidden story behind the Bacardi bat

One of the biggest spirit brands in the world, producing some of the most flavourful rums you can get – oh, and did we mention they’ve been at it for over 150 years?

BUT if we’re totally honest, there’s always been something that kind of bugs us about Bacardi…
What’s with the bat?!

Is there a crazy vampire conspiracy we don’t know about? Is it a symbol? A hidden message? Well, as always, we’ve done the research so you don’t have to. So without further ado, here’s the hidden story behind Bacardi’s bat.

IT’S A SYMBOL OF FEAR

Okay, it’s like this.

The company’s founder, Don Facundo Bacardi Masso, was actually terrified of bats as a child. So much so, that he became almost obsessed with them in adulthood.

Seriously, we mean properly obsessed. One time, after deciding to try and rid his city of criminals, he took his greatest fear and turned it into his biggest strength by dressing up as a giant bat to terrify his many enemies in Gotham –

Wait. Hold up a second. This is all wrong, this is Batman’s origin story. We’re so sorry, we’ll actually do the research now.

IT ALL STARTED IN BACARDI’S FIRST DISTILLERY

After founding the company all the way back in 1862, Don Facundo Bacardi Masso set up Bacardi’s first distillery; a humble, downtrodden warehouse that came with a few uninvited guests.

Spotted by Don Facundo’s wife, Doña Amalia Bacardi (what a name, btw), hundreds of fruit bats were living in the rafters of the family distillery, most likely attracted by the fragrant smell of the molasses.

But rather than throw the fruit bats out on the streets like your average unforgiving landlord, the family, especially Doña, embraced the bats and let them roost to their little furry hearts’ content.

Pretty soon, the locals got wind – but rather than let it get weird, the family must have thought ‘Sod it. We’ve got ourselves a new logo here guys.’ Or something like that anyway. Alas, the face – or wings – of the brand was born.

BUT WHAT DOES IT MEAN?

Look, we know what you’re thinking.

Just ‘cause your place of work is full of something, doesn’t necessarily mean you should call your company after that thing, you know. If we all did that, there’d be a lot of companies running around called Printer Issues, Awkward Bathroom Chat, and Weak Teas From Jenny In HR.

But for Bacardi, the bat symbol was actually a logical choice.

For starters, bats are natural friends of the rum industry as they pollinate the sugarcane crops and prey on insects that damage them. Add this to the fact they are seen as a source of good fortune throughout Latin culture… And it all starts to make sense.

And TODAY? IT’S EVERYWHERE

As it happens, Doña Amalia’s suggestion to use the bat as the company logo turned out to be a seriously savvy business move.

At the time, most of Bacardi’s target market in Cuba were illiterate – and the name ‘Bacardi’ didn’t really mean much, especially after a few rums. But, with the lucky little bat burned into the barrels – and later onto the glass bottles – it was pretty easy for rum-lovers to remember.

They began to ask for el ron del murciélago or “the rum of the bat”.

And the rest, as they say, is history.

These days, Bacardi sell over 200 million bottles of rum a year. With the bat on every single one, it’s probably one of the most recognisable brand symbols EVER.